The Work We Do: Carolina Paulino, North Fork Box

My name is Carolina Paulino. I am one of the co-founders of the North Fork Box along with Maria Vizzi and Lisa Owens, our community relations manager and good friend. We are based in East Marion.

In 2017, Maria and I decided we wanted to start our own company together. We worked together in the Bronx and we’ve been coming out to the North Fork with our families for many, many years. We decided we wanted to be out here more and noticed the talent and the uniqueness of the community out here. We wanted to spread the word about it because there’s something just so special about being here.

We put together gift boxes with items discovered specifically on the North Fork.

We thought it would be a great idea if every three months, you get this really cute box with a bunch of cute items from a location that you love. Each quarter, we put together five to seven items based on the season. You can order it as a subscription or one-time gift for a client, friend or yourself. Everyone loves gifts, right?

We also have specialty boxes like the bridal box, college box and a box of baby items as well. So let’s say your kid is off to college and you wanted to send them something from home.

Carolina Paulino. (Credit: Tara Smith)

A day in the life for both of us includes meeting with vendors, seeing what items could go for the next box. We love walking around town and meeting with different vendors and seeing what’s a good fit for the season.

Then there’s the behind-the-scenes stuff, running the Facebook page and taking photos.

On a packing day, first things first, we put on some music, because we like to get in the groove and a good vibe. We set up our boxes in an assembly line style, we fill up the car and take it to be shipped. It’s a really, really gratifying process. To us, it’s all about the community and making that connection and really exploring and highlighting all that the North Fork has to offer.

“The Work We Do” is a Suffolk Times multimedia project profiling workers on the North Fork. It is made possible by Peconic Landing in Greenport. See photos on Instagram @thesuffolktimes.